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Security report for books.by

Books.by · Technology · Australia

Medium risk. 5 critical or high findings in Security headers, GDPR outside view and 1 other check.

Security score

69/100

Risk levelMedium

0–100, higher is better. How it is calculated

Books.by is a technology-driven platform based in Australia that empowers authors to create their own personal print-on-demand bookstores. The platform enables authors to sell books directly to readers, retain 100% of royalties, and receive daily payouts. Positioned as a competitive alternative to traditional distribution channels like Amazon and Ingram, Books.by targets self-publishers seeking greater control and profitability. The website is professionally designed, leveraging modern web technologies and marketing tools to deliver a seamless user experience. The technical infrastructure is robust, utilizing Webflow CMS, integrated analytics, and multiple tracking pixels for marketing optimization. Security posture is strong with HTTPS enforcement and standard security headers, though the absence of a cookie consent mechanism and public security policies indicates room for improvement. Overall, the site demonstrates high business credibility and trustworthiness with transparent contact information and positive user testimonials.

Scanned

NIS2 and GDPR posture

GDPR outside view
53/ 100 · Medium
Checks completed
7of 7

NIS2 Art. 21(2)

  1. (a) Risk analysis and security policies: Not visible from outside
  2. (b) Incident handling: One indicator
  3. (c) Business continuity, backups and crisis management: Not visible from outside
  4. (d) Supply chain security: Not visible from outside
  5. (e) Secure acquisition, development and maintenance, including vulnerability handling: Partly checked
  6. (f) Assessing the effectiveness of security measures: Not visible from outside
  7. (g) Cyber hygiene and security training: Not visible from outside
  8. (h) Cryptography and encryption: Partly checked
  9. (i) HR security, access control and asset management: One indicator
  10. (j) Multi-factor authentication and secured communications: Not visible from outside

This scan rated NIS2 with an earlier keyword method that is no longer shown; rescan for the per-article view. Risk management, continuity, supply chain, training, MFA, management oversight (Art. 20) and incident reporting (Art. 23) need internal evidence, and Guard cannot tell whether NIS2 applies to this organisation.

GDPR is indicative only, based on publicly visible signals: Articles 7, 12, 13 and 32 of Regulation (EU) 2016/679 and Article 5(3) of the ePrivacy Directive. Not a certification or legal assessment.

Priority findings

5 findings rated critical or high. Fix these first.

  1. Security headers

    Security headers are instructions your web server sends to every visitor’s browser. Missing ones leave visitors more exposed to attacks such as clickjacking and injected scripts.

    • High

      Missing X-Frame-Options header

      Prevents clickjacking attacks

      What to do: Add "X-Frame-Options: DENY" or "X-Frame-Options: SAMEORIGIN"

    • High

      Missing Content-Security-Policy header

      Controls resources the browser is allowed to load

      What to do: Implement a Content-Security-Policy appropriate for your application

      • ASVS V3.4.3
      • OWASP Secure Headers: OWASP Secure Headers Project recommends Content-Security-Policy: default-src 'self'; form-action 'self'; base-uri 'self'; object-src 'none';…

  2. GDPR outside view

    These are the privacy signals visitors and data protection authorities look for under GDPR.

    • High

      No Cookie Policy found

      GDPR requires clear information about cookie usage

      What to do: Add a dedicated cookie policy explaining cookie usage and purposes

    • High

      No Cookie Consent Banner found

      GDPR requires explicit consent for non-essential cookies

      What to do: Implement a cookie consent banner that appears on first visit

  3. SSL/TLS

    TLS encrypts the connection and proves the site is really yours. Weak or expiring certificates trigger browser warnings and put traffic at risk.

    • High

      Weak Protocols Supported

      Server supports weak protocols: TLSv1.1

      What to do: Disable TLS 1.0, TLS 1.1, and all SSL versions

      • CWE-327
      • OWASP A04:2025
      • ASVS V12.1.1

Need hands-on remediation? Email guard@offseq.com

Keep watching books.by

This scan found 23 issues across 6 checks. Monitoring re-runs those checks daily, emails you when something material changes and records each fix, so you can show progress.

Daily monitoring

Recommended

€25per month

  • TLS certificates and expiry
  • DNS records
  • SPF, DKIM and DMARC
  • Security headers
  • GDPR and NIS2 posture
  • Exposed services
  • Third-party trackers
  • Security score drift

Email alerts on material changes and an exportable JSON history of every change.

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Full report

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Results by check

Each check with its score, findings and the evidence it collected.

How this score is calculated

The security score runs 0–100, higher is better. It is the plain average of the security checks that completed in this scan, each counted equally. A check that could not run is left out: it counts neither as a pass nor as a fail.

Counted in this score

SSL/TLS
62
Security headers
30
Email security
85
DNS health
85
Network security
100
GDPR outside view
53
Average
69

Not counted

  • NIS2 outside view: Re-weights evidence from the TLS, email, DNS, network and hygiene checks, so counting it would count that evidence twice. Shown on its own.
  • OffSeq Observations: An AI reading of the site, useful context but not reproducible evidence. Shown on its own.

Findings that cap the score at 49

Each of these is serious on its own, so while any is present the site cannot rate better than high risk, however good the other checks are.

  • The certificate is not trusted by browsers
  • The website is not served over HTTPS
  • A database, remote desktop, file-sharing or Telnet service is reachable from the internet
  • The page loads a script from a compromised source
  • The domain registration has expired
  • SPF authorises every server to send mail as the domain

Partial scans

When the site blocks Guard or most checks cannot run, the score covers only the checks that ran (usually DNS and email), is capped at 75 and is shown as partial, without a risk level.

Risk levels

  • Critical0–25
  • High26–49
  • Medium50–75
  • Low76–100

Technical appendix

Business context, site observations and technical notes gathered during the scan, and the standards behind each reference.

Business context

Business profile

Books.by operates a subscription-based business model charging authors an annual fee for platform access, avoiding commissions on sales. This model supports sustainable revenue while offering authors attractive margins. The company focuses on the niche market of author self-publishing, providing tools for book uploading, customization, and global print-on-demand distribution. The platform's competitive advantage lies in direct customer access and daily royalty payments. Marketing efforts are supported by extensive use of analytics and retargeting services, indicating a mature digital marketing strategy. The company maintains a clear brand identity and consistent messaging, reinforcing trust and professionalism. Partnerships with print and logistics providers are implied but not explicitly detailed. The business appears small but well-positioned for growth in the self-publishing sector.

Security posture

The website exhibits a mature security posture with HTTPS enabled and multiple security headers implemented, reducing common web vulnerabilities. No exposed sensitive data or vulnerable libraries were detected in the HTML content. However, the lack of a published security policy, incident response plan, or vulnerability disclosure mechanism limits transparency and preparedness. The absence of a cookie consent banner may pose compliance risks under GDPR and similar regulations. Third-party scripts from marketing and analytics providers are extensively used, which requires ongoing monitoring for supply chain risks. Overall, the security posture is good but could be enhanced by formalizing policies and improving privacy compliance.

Recommendations

  1. Implement a visible cookie consent banner and detailed cookie policy to ensure GDPR and privacy law compliance.
  2. Publish a comprehensive security policy and incident response plan accessible to users and stakeholders.
  3. Add a vulnerability disclosure policy or security.txt file to encourage responsible reporting of security issues.
  4. Enhance website accessibility features to meet WCAG standards and improve user inclusivity.
  5. Regularly audit and update third-party scripts and dependencies to mitigate supply chain vulnerabilities.

Contact details published on the site

Addresses
Site observations

Automated reading of the public site. Ratings are indicative.

Business

Company
Books.by
Description
Books.by provides authors with the tools to become their own bookstore by creating personal print-on-demand bookstores, allowing them to sell books directly to readers, keep 100% royalties, receive daily payouts, and access customer data.
Key services
Personal print-on-demand bookstore creation, Book publishing and sales, Daily royalty payouts, Customer data access, Free ISBNs, Book proofing and cover maker
Content quality
excellent
Branding
consistent

Technology

Stack
Webflow, Google Fonts, Intercom, Facebook Pixel, TikTok Pixel, Google Tag Manager, Visual Website Optimizer (VWO), EmbedSocial, Klaviyo
Frameworks
Webflow CMS
Platforms
Webflow Hosting
Performance
moderate
Mobile
good
Accessibility
basic
SEO
good

Security

Observed score
85/100
Good practices seen
  • HTTPS enforced
  • No exposed sensitive data in HTML
  • Use of security headers
  • No visible vulnerable libraries

Analytics and tracking

Services
Google Analytics (via GTM), TikTok Analytics, Facebook Analytics, Klaviyo Analytics, Visual Website Optimizer
Tracking level
extensive
Privacy practices
basic

Advertising

Ad networks
Facebook Ads, TikTok Ads, Google Ads
Tracking pixels
Facebook Pixel, TikTok Pixel
Marketing tools
Intercom, Klaviyo, EmbedSocial, Visual Website Optimizer
Transparency
good

Site quality

Design
excellent
User experience
excellent
Content relevance
excellent
Navigation
excellent
Professionalism
excellent
Trustworthiness
high

Key observations

  1. Website is professionally designed with clear business focus on author self-publishing.
  2. Strong use of modern marketing and analytics tools.
  3. No visible security or privacy policy gaps except missing cookie consent banner.
  4. Contact information is clear but no phone number provided.
  5. No visible forms collecting personal data on landing page; sign-up and login redirect to main domain.
  6. Good SEO and accessibility basics but could improve accessibility compliance.
  7. No suspicious or malicious content detected.
Technical notes

Notes

The website is built on the Webflow platform, utilizing modern front-end technologies and integrating multiple third-party marketing and analytics tools such as Intercom, Facebook Pixel, TikTok Pixel, Google Tag Manager, Klaviyo, and Visual Website Optimizer. The hosting is provided by Webflow's CDN, ensuring moderate to fast performance. The site is mobile optimized with responsive design and uses Google Fonts for typography. SEO is well addressed with appropriate meta tags and Open Graph data. Accessibility is basic but could be improved. The extensive use of tracking and marketing scripts indicates a sophisticated digital marketing infrastructure but requires careful management to avoid privacy and security risks. Overall, the technical implementation is solid with opportunities for enhancement in privacy and accessibility.
Standards and sources

Reference chips under each finding point to the standard, regulation or specification the finding relates to. They are taken from the official datasets below and mapped conservatively: a finding with no defensible link shows none. NIS2 and GDPR references mark where a finding is relevant evidence, not a compliance verdict. Implementing Regulation (EU) 2024/2690 binds digital infrastructure and digital service providers; for other entities it is the most detailed public reading of the Article 21 measures. WCAG, EN 301 549, European Accessibility Act and Web Accessibility Directive references name the requirement an automated accessibility rule relates to; they are not a conformance verdict.

Retrieved 2026-10-25

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